Mon cher

They had grown up together,

Fighting sometimes, 

loving each other most times

Life took them on different paths
and when they met again,
years and years later
it was to the good fortune of one
and the terrible fortunes of another
mostly brought about by
who they married

and when the unfortunate sister
(yes, they were sisters)
asked for help,
she was told
to adjust with her lot
and fight her own way out
because everyone
deals with their own fate
and the fortunate one
had been carrying her sister's
disproportionate burden
all her life
and had had enough

What lesson could I learn from it?
From this transformation
of a bright, beautiful girl
into a lazy, depressed,
sickly, and depressing woman

There's a lot i can take away from it
About having money,
for example,
Not having to beg people
for a sachet of coffee
or having to resent it
when you are forced to share it.
About having your own back,
the ability to walk away
from terrible abuse.

About not having children
if you cannot take care of them.
About planning for your life:
what you want,
what you are willing to  settle for,
and what you will
absolutely not tolerate.
and then working towards them.
About how women
have no one but themselves,
at the end of the day.
About not judging anyone
For we all carry
our own heavy burdens
even those that appear
fortunate.

But most of all,
I wondered what could go wrong
in a relationship supposed to be
the closest in the world
the one i live by, swear by

I would hope,
My sister,
That my door is always
Open for you

That i am able to
Give you shelter
No matter what 

my life looks like

how could it be otherwise?

how did it become otherwise

for them?

perhaps it is true that
all relationships require work,
and the closest ones,
most of all

and i can only be grateful to you,
mon cher
for doing all the work,
your share and mine,
all these years